First drive: 2014 Ford Fiesta with EcoBoost

Ford's first 3-cylinder turbo

By John LeBlanc, Postmedia News

Originally published: December 4, 2012

Santa Monica, Calif. — Do you know anyone that orders half an enchilada? Of course not. But that was the consensus when Ford brought back its Fiesta subcompact to North America three years ago.

While lauded for offering both four-door sedan and hatchback models, great fuel economy, “big car” features like a refined cabin and a high fun-to-drive quotient (if not as fun as a Mazda2 or Honda Fit), the 2011 Fiesta just didn’t seem like you were getting the whole enchilada.

So for the 2014 model year, Ford is addressing much of the Mexican-made Fiesta’s shortcomings with some updated styling, a freshened cabin, more features and a newly optional EcoBoost engine — Ford’s first-ever three-cylinder powerplant.

Unless you’ve been living under a set of winter tires lately, you know the EcoBoost brand as Ford’s downsized engine strategy. The Eco means smaller displacement, and the Boost denotes direct injection and turbocharging. In the Fiesta’s case, the 1.0-litre, EcoBoost three-cylinder outputs 123 horsepower and 148 pound-feet of torque; three hp and 36 lb-ft more than the existing Fiesta’s larger, 1.6L naturally aspirated four-cylinder.

As well as Ford’s first engine with three cylinders, the 1.0 EcoBoost has some unique engineering solutions as well. Its exhaust manifold is encased within the cylinder head, the timing belt is immersed in oil to quell noise, a split cooling system for the block and head lets the engine reach its optimum temperature quicker, plus a variable-displacement oil pump. And to offset any three-cylinder’s natural imbalance, Ford engineers weighted the flywheel and pulley.

Fuel economy ratings aren’t out yet, but Ford expects the EcoBoost Fiesta to be “the most fuel-efficient non-hybrid car available.” The most miserly 2013 Fiesta scores 4.8 litres per 100 kilometres in the city and 6.8 on the highway. At first, you’ll only be able to get the Fiesta EcoBoost with a five-speed manual transmission, but the current model’s dual-clutch automatic will come on-stream, eventually.

I had the chance to drive Ford’s first three-cylinder engine last year in a compact European Focus wagon. Admittedly, the power-to-weight ratio didn’t deliver neck-snapping acceleration. But the wee engine’s overriding quality was its smoothness, even when being flogged. And after a brief morning’s drive around Los Angeles in a Euro-spec 2014 Focus EcoBoost, the 1.0L unit seems more at home in the lighter Fiesta.

Expect the Fiesta EcoBoost to shave about one second from the non-EcoBoost car’s just-over-10-second zero-to-100-km/h run. If you have a need for more speed, you’ll just have to wait for the 197-hp Fiesta ST and its larger, 1.6L four-cylinder EcoBoost engine, arriving next year as well.

The Fiesta’s 1.0L mill now pulls more readily up steep grades than the existing 1.6L unit, even from low revs. In slow traffic, the engine is fairly mute. You can hear its turbo whistling away, though, when you’re pressing on. But otherwise, the three-cylinder is just as quiet and smooth in the Fiesta as it was in the Focus.

From a ride and handling aspect, Ford hasn’t made any significant changes to the 2014 Fiesta. It’s still quiet at high speeds and delivers a cushy ride. But others in its class offer sharper steering and more lively driving characteristics.

The rest of the changes for 2014 you can file under “keeping up with the Joneses.”

Outside, the new Fiesta now gets the Aston Martin-like front grille other Fords have adopted. Inside, as before, everything the driver touches in the Fiesta’s cabin feels more grown up, solid and more luxurious than anything its segment. But for 2014, the Ford’s cabin gets more premium materials.

And to counter rivals like the new Kia Rio, Ford is upping the Fiesta’s big car features by adding its MyFord Touch infotainment system (with a large, full-colour control screen) as an upgrade over the existing Sync, MyKey (that lets Mom or Dad set up the car for the teenage drivers in the house) and a new Sony audio system with eight speakers and HD and satellite radio.

What Ford didn’t fix was the Fiesta’s dearth of rear seat room.

The 2014 Fiestas won’t go on sale until the second half of next year, so Ford isn’t releasing pricing yet. But expect the new 1.0 EcoBoost engine option to cost about $1,000 more than the current car’s 1.6L unit, which costs between $13,995 for the S Sedan and $18,999 for the Titanium Hatchback.